By Josephine Sesay

Despite decades of pledges, campaigns, and commissions, the fight against corruption remains a carefully choreographed dance full of motion, yet devoid of progress. Across many developing nations, weak governance and entrenched corruption are not just obstacles to development; they are the architects of generational despair, particularly for millions of unemployed youths watching their futures slip through their fingers.

Calling corruption, a cancer is no longer sufficient. A more accurate description is an ecosystem one that thrives on impunity, broken institutions, and, most dangerously, public fatigue.

Consider the recurring anti-corruption drives. Every administration arrives with slogans, committees, and promises. High-profile arrests are made, press conferences are held, and then silence. Cases dissolve into bureaucratic quicksand, with no meaningful convictions, no structural reform, and no reason to believe the next government will be different.

Meanwhile, youth unemployment continues to rise, both a symptom and a consequence of failed governance. When state contracts are awarded through nepotism rather than merit, when innovation is stifled by red tape lubricated only by bribes, the message to young people is clear this system is not for you.

And the youth are responding. Street protests, mass emigration, and online activism reflect a generation rejecting the old social contract. They are no longer content to be silent stakeholders in a country that offers little more than political theatre and economic stagnation.

Herein lies the danger as faith in public institutions erodes, democracy begins to rot from within. Disillusionment turns into disengagement and disengagement can quickly descend into extremism. A government that fails to provide jobs, justice, or hope leaves a vacuum that bad actors are only too willing to fill.

There is still time to act, but it requires political will not performative reform. Real change demands independent institutions, transparent procurement systems, digital governance that limits human discretion, and, above all, the courage to prosecute power, not just petty criminals.

The youth of today are not lazy or entitled; they are tired. Tired of being told to wait their turn while corrupt elites entrench themselves for yet another decade. The question is no longer whether corruption is holding us back it is whether we are brave enough to confront the truth: the system isn’t broken. It was built this way.

If it stays this way, the most dangerous consequence will not be economic decline. It will be the day when young people stop demanding change not because they achieved it, but because they no longer believe it is possible.

Copyright –Published in Expo Times News on Friday, 3rd October 2025 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)